Since, it was Surya's birthday our family decided to go out. Surya decided to talk our parents into going to a German restaurant. My parents were hilarious. My Dad's initial reaction was, "German food, what's that? Why German food?" Afterwards, my parents were glad they tried it. Dad mistakenly assumed that German food will be bland steak or something like Shepherd's pie. It's quite different. At Gustav's, we had schnitzels, sausage and fondue as appetizer (fondue is more Swiss). I have not had steak since I arrived from Argentina. At least German meat dishes are not bland. They also have…

Hello friends… I have been out of blogging for a while. Mostly travelling and it is hard to keep blogging while on the road. This weekend I am in Houston doing a weekend retreat and then off to Asia for a month. I doubt, if I will be able to have net access as much. So thot of posting something, before hitting the road. In the US, economic and political news dominates these days. Friends of mine in the financial industry are dreading loss of their investment, jobs and spirits. Last couple of weeks saw the worstever slide of the…

A few months ago, Shainu started a Facebook account.  It didn’t take long before she became a Facebook junky.  One friend led to another, and before you knew it, she was in over her head.  A never-ending stream of pictures to upload, comments to make, virtual friendships to maintain.  It was quite a rush.  Initially we had a joint account: Ajay & Shainu Thomas.  And at first that was fine.  I’m all for being one.  But then, since I didn’t use the account much, everything had a very feminine feel.  Like our status updates always read something like, Ajay &…

Has God called you to stand for a cause bigger than yourself? You will have opposition to His call; sometimes it even comes from those in your own camp. But if God has called you, then you can be sure He will make a way. He has already opened the way before you. But you must walk in faith, joined with Him to take the land. " . . . Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go" (Joshua 1:9). His Prayer House

“The evangelisation of the world…is not chiefly a European and Americanenterprise, but an Asiatic or African enterprise.” Increasingly it is the task, the Report continued, of “the Church in the Mission-field…[by] well-qualified native evangelists and leaders.” Samuel Thambusamy

NEW DELHI: Condemning violence against Christians and vandalism of churches in Orissa and elsewhere in the country, L.K. Advani, Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, described the rape of a nun as “a shameful crime against humanity.” Mr. Advani said this during a meeting with a delegation of Christian leaders here. The Christian leaders condemned the killing of Swami Lakshamananda Saraswathi and his four disciples in Kandhamal district in August. A joint statement issued by Mr. Advani and the church leaders called for an end to religious conversions or re-conversions using coercive, fraudulent and allurement-based means, or through…

SOME of life's most profound lessons can be learned through stories and parables. In appealing parable style, Ken Blanchard tells the moving story of how a local church can lose its focus and become a curse to the community around them. In ‘The Most Loving Place in Town’,  discover the story of two men, a disillusioned church elder and a gifted young pastor, who recognize that their church has lost sight of its number one priority: loving God and each other. They begin a search, independently at first, to recapture their lost love and then together lead their fellowship in a successful…

so i've been thinking...kind of pointless stuff i have to admit, but thinking nonetheless. i've been around for nearly a quarter of a century. according to life expectancy numbers, a third of my life on this planet is over. a whole damn THIRD of it is gone, in the past, soon to be forgotten. i mean seriously, did i even do anything worthwhile in all my years of existence? i don't even know what is worthwhile anymore. it seems to me that those things that i enjoyed and found fulfillment doing, everyone else sees as a worthless waste of my…

TAHIRA ALI CONCERT You Are Invited To Join UsSpecial - Inspiring Testimony from Lt. General Ajai Masih [India][From Civilian to Career Soldier to Cancer to Commission] Invite Your Family and FriendsSpread the Word AroundPrayers Will Be Made For The Sick And Those In Need _________________________________________________ When  :FRIDAY 24th October 2008 at 7.30pmWhere  :Home of Sharon and Sukhdarshan Blk 511, #12-251. Singapore 680511Chua Chu Kang Street 51Nearest MRT – Chua Chu Kang MRT Station *Please call Michelle at 9069.9352 for more information_________________________________________________ When  :SATURDAY 25th October 2008 at 7.30pmWhere  :Sindhi FellowshipLocation in Katong/East CoastNearest MRT – Bedok MRT Station *Please call Sis. Huri at 6260.1292 or…

That's a TV show I never heard of till now. My sister told me about this after hearing about it from an Englishman she met. As Indians, it's very easy to make fun of ourselves. I laughed hard. I can't help but wonder - why can't we have TV shows like this in the US? Typical Indian Parents - This Is What Most British Asians Go Through During Their Education Phase. I put this here because many years ago, a classmate and I were chatting with her grandmother about life, dating and other random topics and I asked her what…

Most of us do not land in our dream jobs. We don’t get to do things that we love to do. We first keep dreaming, then we move on day dreaming. As the reality-expectation gap increases we get frustrated. And so we sulk! We blame our luck. We point fingers at people. We complain endlessly. Worse, we develop self-defeating behaviour and live a “wasted” life. some people are “in-waiting” for their dream job. They are just “filling in” for some time. And they keep dreaming about their dream job. There’s no involvement. They are just there. Mostly dreaming. Oh! what…

The following is a post by Joe & Lisa who are at 7 Mile Road Boston getting ready to move and be a part of planting 7 Mile Road Philadelphia: We are at a weird stage in our life. Neither here nor there.  We know in less than 6 or 7 months we will be off to Philly, but deciding on what to do with our time now is hard.  We get the updates of what is going on in Philly and we are frustrated because we can not be there.  We see all the great things going on here…

In every camp I visited the main feeling was one of despair and hopelessness at the cruel turn of events.  Practically everyone complained of the threats they had received that their return to their homes was predicated on their acceptance of the Hindu religion.  I was even shown a letter addressed by name to one woman stating that the only way she could return to her home and property again was if she returned to the village as Hindu. Report of the National Commission for Minorities.REPORT ON THE VISIT OF THE VICE CHAIRPERSON, NCM TO ORISSA – 11TH TO 13TH…

While demanding justice, a nun who was allegedly raped in Orissa's riot-hit Kandhamal district has claimed that she can identify the culprits. The nun alleged that she was dragged by her hair by men from a Hindu household where she was hiding. "...Two men were holding my hand, one raped me," she told CNN-IBN from an 'undisclosed location'. She demanded justice not only for herself "but for the sake of the people she was working with." The nun appealed to the state government for ensuring protection to the people of Kandhmal and said the situation had been bad for far…

Apparently, a struggle is taking place in the US Congress regarding the exact terms of the rescue package for the US (and international) financial system. Equally apparently, the proposed bill was supposed to have been $500bn, is now $700bn - and no one knows what the final size of the bill may be. A statement issued on behalf of Nancy Pelosi, the speaker of the House of Representatives, reportedly says: “Congress will respond to the financial markets crisis by taking action this week in a bipartisan manner...(but the Democrats) “will not simply hand over a $700bn blank cheque to Wall…

"Separate unto Me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them" (Acts 13:2b). There is a pressing need in the Body of Christ to distinguish and discern the difference between the Lord of the Work and the work of the Lord. How easy it is to confuse these two things and treat them as one and the same. Yet the difference before God is quite vast. "Brothers & Sisters ....the work for the Lord is NOT "the" most important thing." !!! Allowed these words to sink into your hearing for a moment.

'We see it now in the collapse of the great banks that money disappears, it's nothing,' said Pope Benedict.VATICAN CITY - POPE Benedict said on Monday that the global financial crisis showed that faith in God trumped a lifetime spent pursuing material wealth.'We see it now in the collapse of the great banks that money disappears, it's nothing,' the Pontiff said. The global financial turmoil, the worst since the Great Depression, has wiped away hundreds of billions of euros (dollars) in shareholder wealth and felled banking institutions that just months ago seemed untouchable. The pontiff, using a biblical metaphor, said…

by Robin SamMY father-in-law passed away on Sept 17. At 8.05 in the morning, the doctors declared Lucas Baby dead. After 9 days of battle with death, he surrendered to the debilitating clot in the brain that left his speech impaired, damaged his already weak kidneys and affected his respiratory ability. When he was rushed to the hospital on Sept 9, we knew it was serious. Yet, we fervently hoped he would come out of it as a victor – like he had done in the past three occasions. After all, he was a great survivor. He had battled the odds…

In its Comment ("Canterbury tales", September 25), the Financial Times criticises Archbishops Sentamu and Williams for not having "a proper grasp of how modern finance works". Read Article Here: As readers of my Blog will know, Archbishops are hardly my favourite characters. However, to the degree they may not have such a grasp, the FT is right to excuse them - for the reasons it gives. But I notice that the FT defends the current system by saying that "Everything from home-ownership to old age pensions relies on a successful and sophisticated financial sector". What reasons or excuses should be…